From one horror enthusiast to another, just give it a chance and watch. It channels atmosphere of some of the greatest and blends them together seamlessly, from The Descent to The Poughkeepsie Tapes. Barbarian avoids many of the pitfalls of the majority current horror, i.e. An unpredictable story that keeps you guessing, intrigued, all the while on the edge of your seat, depth and emotion in places you least expect, and genuinely tense atmosphere throughout. While not reliant on jumpscares, it managed to startle me a couple times. The acting was nothing to scoff about either, all actors played their parts brilliantly, comedic and light when they need to be, rigid and scared when they need to. Definitely worth the worth for anyone interested in horror as a genre, and hoping for maybe a prequel.
Reviews
5 Reviews
Nobody
(I) (2021)
A solid action movie that doesn't take itself too seriously.
1 April 2021
Title says the majority of it. Bob Odenkirk delivers a fantastic and enjoyable experience. Nobody offers everything you hoped it would be if you saw the trailers. The story is fairly interesting and solid for an action movie that doesn't follow the cookie cutter revenge story we're all too familiar with by now, and tells that story with many enjoyable action scenes and punch lines. The movie was an overall blast that knows what it is, and doesn't try to be anything it isn't.
Captures the Essence of The Show in the Oddest Way Possible
14 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
A lot of the points and themes touched on in this episode, along with the entire mood/vibe, feel like the quintessential episode of Lovecraft Country so far. It wasn't the best episode out of the 5 released so far, but the elements of the show are all there. The acting is fine as always, and so is the production value/quality. Now for the actual content of the episode: the entire struggle between Ruby choosing to be white or stay colored was portrayed very well. I felt myself almost slipping into the delirium of, "what's the choice to make" with her. The way it's delivered through grotesque metamorphosis is very graphic and gory and turned my stomach inside out in the best way possible. The show turns something as simple as "switching bodies" persay and makes it very interesting. There is one scene in particular, and if you have seen the episode you know what I'm talking about, that I feel may be a bit controversial. I felt it had its place in the story, as hard as it was to watch, but I think it went on just a tad too long and pushed it. Moving on to the parts of the episode that focus on Montrose, they needs a little more explanation (along with the rest of the show, but especially this). I'm not homophobic before anyone jumps to that, but I feel needless forcing of representation does more harm than good, although I assume it plays it's role as a plot device. On the off hand that it doesn't, I feel that it does more harm to the show as a distraction rather than help. Overall the episode was good... Odd, but good nonetheless if you're willing to overlook a few things. The writers and producers perfectly captured the spiral into minor madness that is so classically Lovecraftian as Ruby tests her boundaries as a white woman.
Lovecraft Country
(2020)
As of episode three, very good, but not for everyone.
4 September 2020
The biggest question I had about the show was how much of the horror themes were gonna be racial or Lovecraftian. As of episode three, the horror is fairly evenly balanced. There are a lot of scenes that focus on racial tensions and horrors that are extremely well done, and never feels like a slap-in-the-face message about racism. Rather they produce genuine tension and anxiety. As for the Lovecraftian horror themes, they are fairly sparse and scattered (nothing really happens until the end of episode one), but when they do show up, they are exquisitely well done and interesting. There are constant nods to Lovecraft, and his mythos- i.e. episode three is a love letter to "The Rats in The Walls"- and the story incorporates and weaves them in well so far, but it is only episode three. Now for why it may not be for everyone; it does have a complex story and method of delivery. A lot of information is alluded to, or glazed over so you really have to pay attention, and episode two was very confusing on the first watch and required two watches, paying close attention each time. It is not the show for you if you are looking for an easy story to digest, this one will make you think and put things together yourself. On the other hand, if you don't mind using your brain when watching this show, it's superb, especially for those who love and are familiar with Lovecraft and his mythos. The overall direction of the show is still a little unclear. It started out with a clear motive but switches up really quick. That is one thing I am still waiting to see is the overall story arc and direction. As I said though, it is only episode three of supposedly ten so far. I would highly recommend watching if anything mentioned about it sounds interesting.
GOOD, not great.
4 May 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This is episode really kind of felt like a mess and so did the season. We can generally all agree that the first season is magnum opus of the show as of yet, and I personally really enjoyed season two once it took off, and was super excited for three. This season did not deliver. The story itself wasn't terrible by any means; Rehoboam was a unique concept, it wasn't bad seeing the outside of the park, some good new characters, etc. Where this show lost me the most is it's delivery; between Maeve's over-the-top badaasery and Dolores quite frankly just being annoying, I found myself not as invested in something I used to really be invested in. The climax for this episode was kind of cheesy and the supposed to be touching moment with Dolores kind of felt hollow after how her character has been developing. On the other hand, there is the Bernard/Stubbs storyline, and William, which both had me intrigued the entire season, and never felt too cringy, boring, annoying, etc. After the climactic finales of the last two seasons this one really felt like a letdown, saved only by its couple sincerely touching moments and a setup for a much bigger story. I am curious to see where they take Caleb's story, and the bigger picture. If it had not been for the after credits scene, there would have been very few saving graces to this episode as a finale. So, overall this episode is simply good, from a show that normally delivers great.
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